FERPFA - I could make a title out of that

"Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act"

Know what that is?

A couple of weeks ago I promised myself that I was going to stop paying attention to all the stupid things going on in Washington, like ObamaCare and the shutdown and (you name it).

And then this stupid idea showed up.

Looks like furloughed workers, who were sent away from their jobs, are going to get paid for their vacations. Is this right?

Well, if they are going to get paid, then tell them to get back to work.

Oh, wait; they would be breaking a law. Did I read that there is actually a law that prohibits furloughed workers from going into their offices and working without pay?

The House voted 407-0 on Saturday. Shame on them!

Costa Rica is looking better and better. Is the Passport Office still working?

Vandalism surge in Woodstock

What's up with the vandalism surge in Woodstock?

In the monthly reports of the Woodstock Police Department to the City Manager (and Mayor and City Council), Vandalized Property of $22,800 was reported for July 2013 and of $42,105 was reported for August 2013. That's $64,905 in two months.

How does this compare with previous months?

$80,438 was reported as the total for the 22-month period prior to July of this year, for an average of $3.656/month. The low reported vandalism in the 22-month prior period was $1,610 (August 2012) and the high was $5,525 (May 2012).

What was "special" about July and August of this year? Do you remember any significant reports of vandalism in the news?

What should the Woodstock Police be making public about vandalism? Were there isolated incidents involving major vandalism? Or were there "sprees"? What parts of Woodstock were hit?

According to the report for July, twenty (20) vehicles were damaged and burglarized on July 8-9 on Woodstock's south side. Have there been arrests? Were there any tips to Crime Stoppers of McHenry County?

Right-to-Carry Assn. to meet Thursday

The McHenry County Right to Carry Association will meet on Thursday for a gathering with Illinois State Representative Jack Franks and a discussion of Public Act 098-0063, the Illinois concealed carry law.

The meeting will be on Thursday, October 10, at 7:00PM at the Woodstock VFW, located at 240 N. Throop St., Woodstock. There is no charge for this meeting.

Members of MCR2CA are invited, as are guests and members of the public. Women interested in concealed carry and this law are especially invited.

If you wish to submit questions in advance, send them to mcr2ca@gmail.com

Information about the Association can be viewed on www.mcr2ca.org, and you are invited to monitor that website for future meetings. Memberships can be started online; just fill out the form and pay your $20 via PayPal. Or you can print and mail your application and check to MCR2CA, P.O. Box 663, Woodstock, IL 60098.

It is expected that applications can be filed in January. Who knows how long it will take the Illinois State Police to approve them? The ISP anticipates 400,000 applications in 2014.

The battle for a fair concealed-carry law is not over. Some legislators and municipalities are already hammering away at it.

Want to start struggling through the law? Go to www.ilga.gov

Then click on Public Acts, and then on the first link. Scroll down to 098-0063. When you see "Electronic Transfer-Terminals", that's it. This is our Illinois Legislature operating at its finest. A shell bill was created with that title. Then it was gutted and replaced with the concealed carry bill that finally became law on July 9.

Beth Bentley - now gone 176 weeks

Last Sunday there was an article in the Chicago Tribune about a 225 sq. mi. search for Nicholas Steward, 33, a Lake Villa man who vanished on September 20. Supposedly he was on the way home from his engineering job in Wood Dale.

The article included this: "About 5 p.m., Steward left his engineering job and texted his wife, Megan, to let her know. Twenty-eight minutes later, his I-Pass transponder shows that his car passed through the northbound Touhy Avenue Toll Plaza, friends said"

When Beth Bentley vanished sometime between May 20-24, 2010, did Woodstock Police or any other agency ask for the I-Pass records of any transponder in the rental car that Beth and Jenn Wyatt reportedly drove to Mt. Vernon? Did they take the Tollway at any point? Did Jenn take the Tollway at any point on the return trip on Monday, May 24?

In the search for Steward, somebody got information out of the Tollway about his September 20 toll deduction for his I-Pass. Presumably, the Tollway Authority would only release information to the accountholder or the police. How would the police get the information? Is there a working relationship between the Tollway Authority and police departments? Did they need a subpoena?

Did Woodstock PD contact the Tollway?

Maybe they did. Beth Bentley's case has always been classified as a Missing Person case, not as a crime. It would certainly seem that the Woodstock PD could release much more information than it has, since they have never called her disappearance a crime.

Just about everybody else thinks a crime is involved. A mother of three, wife, office manager, friend doesn't usually just walk away with the clothes on her back and no known traveling money.

FEN v. Nygren, Leist

Read Cal Skinner's excellent summary of today's court hearing in the case of FirstElectricNewspaper.com against Sheriff Nygren and Legal Affairs officer Don Leist.

It was no surprise to me that the Office of (Illinois) State Appellate Defender wouldn't snap up the case for the defense. It's clearly not in their mandate to do so. So, when Leist told Judge Meyer recently that Nygren and Leist would accept representation by OSAD, what was he really saying?

Cough, cough.... somebody, please turn on the ventilation system....

You can read the McHenry County Blog (click on it) for Cal's story. It sounds to me like Judge Meyer is going to jam an attorney down their collective throats. Nygren and Leist can't seem to find anybody to represent them. Did they try James Sotos? Didn't he want the case? Not even for (how many? $400?) dollars an hour?

Maybe nobody wants it because they don't want to be on the losing end of the stick (again).

David is about to slay Goliath. That's how it is shaping up.

Cal's story ends with: "(McHenry County First Assistant State's Attorney Norm) Vinton pointed out that Nygren is expected to appeal, if he loses.  (After the session, one attorney observed that the Appellate Court would take a year to render a decision, placing it after next year’s General Election.)"

So the Public gets all the dirt either before Zinke loses the race for Sheriff or after. But the Public will get the dirt. By that time, there will be all new faces at the top of the pile at the Sheriff's Department.

Next date for court: October 10, 9:30AM

Best-ever political cartoon

I don't know the source of this, but I received it today from Colorado. Man, is it ever right on??? !!!

Do you believe this?

I just received a Flag alert that October 6, 2013, is to be a Flag half-staff day. And why, you ask?

Because our Fearless Leader, Mr. "Nose-in-the-Air" President, has proclaimed October 6th to be the day to honor National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service.

So on Sunday, when the U.S. Government is shut down, Federal employees will turn out, at overtime pay, I presume, to lower all U.S. Flags. And the States will follow. Will this mean State employees, at overtime pay, will show up at dawn to lower flags, and then return at dusk to raise them?

Will this be a full day (or perhaps a 12-hour day) at over-time pay?

We can best honor fallen firefighters by remembering them as we drive past our Flag, while it is flying proudly at the top of its pole.

I'm about ready to purchase a flagpole, so that I can fly my Flag at full-staff every day and, with lights, every night. And refuse to lower it. The U.S. Flag should be flown at the top of the staff every day and NEVER lowered!

By the way, thanks to WFRD Station 1 for installing lights for its 24/7 flag out front.